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└───┘ Version 1.10
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Tunnels-N-Tombs Version 1.12
Copyright (C) 1994 John Parlin
All Rights Reserved
Release Date: 08-18-1994
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
- 1 -
LICENSING INFORMATION JUST FOR YOU
This Software is Licensed, not sold. The Software in this package is
licensed according to the terms of the following agreement:
SOFTWARE LICENSE AGREEMENT
IMPORTANT: Please read this license agreement before using this
software. By using this software you acknowledge your agreement to
the terms of this license.
If you do not wish to follow the terms of this license agreement, you
must remove this software from your system. The only portion of the
software that you may retain is the distribution archive itself which
may be used solely for distribution purposes.
This program is not guaranteed to do anything but take up disk space
(and a significant amount depending on setup). This program was
written for a DOS-based platform. This means that if you run another
operating system and have problems, you're basically on your own.
DEFINITIONS
The term "Software" as used in this agreement means the full system
and all utility computer programs contained in the distribution
archive, together with any updates subsequently supplied by John
Parlin.
The term "Related Materials" means all the printed materials provided
in this package or later supplied by John Parlin for use with the
Software.
TERMS
You are granted a limited license to use this software for a sixty-day
trial period. You are encouraged to run this software for the full
sixty-day period to ensure proper operation. After expiration of the
trial period, you must either register with the author or remove the
Software from your system. No special "demo" key files are required
during the trial period. The registration fee is $20.00 U.S. Funds. A
Registration Form is included in the distribution archive and is
called TNT.REG. Once registered, you will receive a license to use the
Software on your system for an unlimited period of time.
You may copy the Software and documentation for backup purposes. You
also may copy and share UNMODIFIED copies of the distribution archive,
providing that the copyright notice is reproduced and included on all
copies and no fee is charged for distributing the Software.
- 2 -
You may not sell this software for a fee and/or distribute this
software along with other products without express written permission
from John Parlin, nor may you modify or remove the Copyright Notice
from the program or the documentation.
You may not alter the machine-readable object files or program
documentation files for any purpose including but not limited to;
Defeating the internal key system structure for purposes of gaining an
unlawful registration or; Modifying the program copyright notice or
any other text therein. You also may not alter any embedded
installation archives in such a way as to render them unreadable by
program installation files used by the Software.
Those who register this program within one year of the release date
indicated at the beginning of this document, will receive a
non-transferable registration number. This number will be delivered
either by personal upload, or postal service. Allow up to 6 weeks for
delivery to locations outside the continental U.S. For locations
within the continental U.S., allow 2-6 weeks for delivery. All
registrations are processed in a timely manner and usually only take a
few days to deliver. However, when unforseen circumstances arise,
registration turnaround times may be delayed.
John Parlin reserves the right to revoke software licenses in lieu of
any violation of the terms of this license agreement.
LIMITED WARRANTY
THIS PRODUCT IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. THE
ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE RESULTS AND PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGRAM IS
ASSUMED BY YOU. JOHN PARLIN DOES NOT WARRANT, GUARANTEE, OR MAKE ANY
REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE OF, RESULTS OF, MERCHANTABILITY OR
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE OF THE SOFTWARE. SHOULD THE PROGRAM
PROVE DEFECTIVE, YOU ASSUME THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY
SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION. FURTHER, JOHN PARLIN DOES NOT
WARRANT, GUARANTEE, OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE OF,
OR THE RESULTS OF THE USE OF THE SOFTWARE IN TERMS OF CORRECTNESS,
ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, CURRENTNESS, OR OTHERWISE; AND YOU RELY ON THE
SOFTWARE AND RESULTS SOLELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. JOHN PARLIN WILL NOT BE
LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SYSTEM DAMAGE,
SERVICE, REPAIR, CORRECTION, LOSS OF PROFIT, LOSS OF SAVINGS, OR ANY
OTHER INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR SPECIAL DAMAGES OF ANY NATURE
WHATSOEVER RESULTING FROM THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THIS PRODUCT.
SUPPORT BBS AND DISTRIBUTION SITES
- 3 -
METHOD OF SUPPORT
Comments, suggestions and bug reports are welcome. If you have any,
you should contact John Parlin on the City Terminal BBS. When
reporting a problem, give the program version number and detailed
description of the problem you're having in a comment to the Sysop.
All support for this program is handled through E-Mail messages on
City Terminal at (612) 566-5532, 1200-14400 BPS.
The following BBS Sysops have agreed to be distribution sites for
Tunnels-N-Tombs. Unless these sites have changed their status, you
should be able to grab the latest version from:
System: City Terminal
Sysop: John Parlin
Phone: (612) 566-5532
Baud Rate: 1200-14400 BPS
System: The O-Zone BBS
Sysop: Jim Biggs
Phone: (612) 537-8659
Baud Rate: 1200-16800 BPS
UPGRADES
Upgrades will be provided through the distribution sites listed above
as well as from any DDS system. Program updates consist of minor and
major revisions. All minor updates are available for download and
usage free of charge to registered Sysops. Major updates may require
a small upgrade fee based on the complexity of the update.
How can you tell if a release is a minor or major update? The program
version number will indicate this. For example:
Program version number: 1.00
| |
| --- Minor revision
\---- Major revision
In this example, a release revision of 1.10 would indicate a minor
program revision and no upgrade fee would be charged to those who are
currently registered 1.00 users. A release revision of 2.00 would
indicate a major program revision and may require a small upgrade fee,
which would be indicated in the TNT.NEW file (included in the
distribution archive).
- 4 -
INTRODUCTION
This program is the result of almost 12 months of work. I'd like to
extend my sincere gratitude to Paul Andre and Bob Eastham for their
help in this project. Paul helped me to design the map generator in
such a way as to be able to use generated maps in a door game
environment. The entire game is array-intense and stumbling blocks we
ran into along the way indicated that the game would not even work as
a BBS door since size and memory requirements were extensive. But,
with Paul's help, we re-designed the entire map generator and program
concept so we could proceed.
Not being an avid D&D player, I really knew nothing about how these
games worked; enter Bob Eastham. Being a D&D fanatic from the past,
Bob has literature (tons of it) which laid out many D&D scenarios
including monsters and how things like hitpoints and damage points are
administered. Bob helped to design a unique setup which allowed us to
design an original game while keeping within the general guidelines of
basic D&D. Bob kept at me. We got together at every opportunity in
order to keep the development moving. When we got to the point where
the attack matrix was completed and the monster and item resources
were defined, I began to work on implementing it as a door program.
This took another 3 months of working in my spare time on the project.
The beauty of the game is that it's really never the same game twice.
Players must 'learn' about the game while they're playing it which
represents a challenge with each new game.
Let's try to describe the game. Tunnels-N-Tombs (henceforth referred
to as TNT) is a D&D type game consisting of a maze that is generated
randomly each time a new game is started. The maze is made up of
levels. Each level consists of a map resource as well as an items
resource. Each player plays from the same maze of map levels and
items which makes for a fair tournament since every player has the
same opportunities and situations presented to them. How each player
acts upon these opportunities and situations differs from player to
player and ultimately determines the outcome of the game.
Players move through the maze starting at map level 1 and work their
way down through the TNT trying to reach the bottom level which
contains the sacred star of jewels. The object of the game is to pick
up the sacred star and bring it back to the earth's surface, winning
fame and fortune and a place in scientific history.
Moving through the levels of TNT, players encounter monsters and
items. Monsters are depicted by the capital letters A through Z.
Items are depicted by special symbols as listed in the on-line help
scrolls. Items include potions, scrolls, wands, armor, weapons, food,
gold and rings. While most items are helpful, some items are
dangerous. Each item type is identified either by using it or by
- 5 -
using a scroll of identify to identify the item type. Once an item
type is identified, all like items are automatically identified
throughout the course of the game.
Mazes are generated by the maintenance program MAPGEN.EXE. MAPGEN is
used to administer the game in that it will detect when a game has
been won and restart the game if this is the case. MAPGEN should be
run from a nightly maintenance event from within your BBS batch file.
More on this later.
The on-line help and instruction scrolls are available to players from
the game's main menu. These scrolls were written to assist players in
learning about the game although they are not intended to give all the
answers since that would take some of the challenge and fun out of it.
Unfortunately, history indicates that folks generally don't read
documentation unless they absolutely have to. But if they need it,
help is there.
As a door program, TNT offers some configuration flexibility to the
Sysop. TNT supports BBS systems which are capable of generating a
standard DOOR.SYS or DORINFO1.DEF drop file. These files contain
information about the user currently on-line such as user name, time
remaining, communications settings, etc.
TNT supports the use of an installed FOSSIL driver (communications
driver) as well as direct asynchronous communications support. The
async engine will support locked DTE rates of up to 57K baud.
The Remote Imaging Protocol (RIP) is also supported although in a
limited manner. When a RIP terminal program is detected, TNT resets
the user's display to 80x25 which is appropriate for normal operation.
TNT is written in Turbo Pascal using a customized version of
JPDoor 3.2 (JPDoor 3.2 Custom-Lite). An ANSI.SYS driver is absolutely
required to be loaded in order for the local console to display
properly during program operation.
TNT supports DesqView and requires no special setups in order to
operate properly. In cases where "bleed through" is a problem, make
the following adjustment in the DesqView window(s) running TNT:
Virtualize Text/Graphics? YES
Turbo Pascal is Copyrighted by Borland International. DesqView is
Copyrighted by Quarterdeck Office Systems. JPDoor is Copyrighted by
Motor City Software.
TNT uses record locking and is multi-line aware. To accomodate the
multi-line functions, SHARE *MUST* be loaded on the host computer
system (even on single line systems). If you run a DOS version prior
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to 4.0, you may still be required to load SHARE. If TNT aborts
abrubtly without producing an error in the TNT.LOG file, you should
verify that SHARE is loaded on your computer.
REQUIREMENTS
TNT requires 190K of RAM in order to run. It also requires DOS
version 3.3 or later. Players are required to support ANSI color and
graphics. Though the game will play fine in mono-mode, it is
mandatory that ANSI emulation be supported on the player's machine.
Also, an installed ANSI driver is required on the host computer such
as the DOS ANSI.SYS or the DesqView DVANSI driver.
INSTALLATION/CONFIGURATION
By following the installation steps outlined in INSTALL.DOC, you
completed step one of the installation process. Now, you must
configure TNT to run on your system.
Included in the program package is the configuration utility program
TTCONFIG.EXE. This program allows you to specify system and game
settings and also allows you to create one or more line configurations
for TNT. Each line or 'node' that is to run will have its own line
settings from which to pull communications setup information such as
communications port, port address, IRQ setting, etc. Note that these
settings are really only used when the async engine is selected. In
cases where a FOSSIL driver is used, communications settings are
pulled directly from the BBS drop file. Regardless, these settings
must be specified for each individual node.
Fire up TTCONFIG.EXE. Upon initial startup, TTCONFIG will create a
default TNT.CFG file for default system and game settings as well as a
default LINES.CFG file for default line settings. Once TTCONFIG is
fired up, you will be presented with a main menu of sub-menus
available. Each sub-menu field is explained below. While in a
sub-menu, pressing F1 presents a brief help window pertaining to the
field on which the cursor is currently positioned.
SYSTEM SETTINGS
----------------------------------------------------------------------
BBS Name: This is the BBS name that you wish to use with
the program. This is the BBS name that you
should specify when filling out the
registration form (TNT.REG).
System Operator Name: This is the BBS System Operator (Sysop) name
that you wish to use with the program. This is
the Sysop name that you should specify when
filling out the registration form (TNT.REG).
- 7 -
Drop File Type: This setting specifies which drop file type
should be used. This is a toggle setting and
valid choices include DORINFOx.DEF and
DOOR.SYS. Pressing <SPACEBAR> on this field
toggles the setting.
Registration Number: This is the registration number you received
when you registered TNT.
Adopted By: This is the optional name of a user who may
have adopted (registered) TNT for you. This is
used only when TNT has been registered.
GAME SETTTINGS
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of Levels: This setting specifies the number of levels
to be generated each time MAPGEN generates a
new game. Valid settings are from 30 to 100
levels.
NOTE: MAPGEN will generate one map consisting
of the number of levels specified here.
The map is then shared by all players.
The size of the map (TNT.MAP) is
proportional to the number of levels
specified here. A 100-level maze can
approach 800K in size.
Another consideration here is that the more
levels generated, the longer a game takes to
win. It is suggested that you start out with
40 levels and see how it goes. Then increase
or decrease the number of levels as needed.
NOTE: Setting the number of levels to a lesser
value than 40 makes the game more
difficult, faster. Higher level
monsters appear earlier.
Max Minutes: This setting specifies the maximum number of
minutes each player may be in the game on a
daily basis.
LINE SETTTINGS
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The Line Settings Editor is used to specify the characteristics of the
setup for each individual line or "node" to be used. From within the
editor you can press ALT-A to add a new line entry, ALT-D to delete
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the current entry or ALT-L to select from a list of available entries.
Line Number: This is the BBS line number for this line
entry. For example, if the line entry being
edited is for BBS line 2, enter 2 here. This is
reflected on the status bar.
DropFile Path: This is the path where the program will search
for the drop file indicated by the DropFile
Type setting (in the System Settings menu). If
you do not specify a trailing backslash, one
will be appended automatically.
Communication Driver: This setting allows you to choose between using
an installed FOSSIL driver or the internal
ASYNC ENGINE. When using the ASYNC ENGINE, you
can also specify non-standard communications
port settings (see below).
The recommended setting is to use the ASYNC
ENGINE.
Comm. Port Name: This setting can be changed only when the ASYNC
ENGINE is selected as the communications
driver. Valid selections are COM1 through COM8
and LOCAL. Use the <SPACEBAR> to toggle this
setting. By setting this field to LOCAL, you
specify local mode operation for the profile
being configured.
NOTE: When selecting COM1 through COM4,
default values are assigned to the Comm.
Port Address and IRQ Number settings.
These may then be changed manually.
Comm. Port Address: This setting can be changed when the ASYNC
ENGINE is selected as the communications
driver. This allows the use of non-standard
communications port base addresses to be used.
The "$" symbol which proceeds the base address
denotes that the value is represented in
hexadecimal format. When entering a value in
this field, you should NOT include the "$"
symbol.
NOTE: When selecting standard addresses $03F8,
$02F8, $03E8 or $02E8 a default value
will be assigned to the IRQ Number
setting. The IRQ Number setting can
- 9 -
then be changed manually.
Standard Port Standard Address Standard IRQ
============= ================ ============
COM1 $03F8 4
COM2 $02F8 3
COM3 $03E8 4
COM4 $02E8 3
When using COM5 through COM8, you should
specify the correct base address and IRQ line
number settings that you are using.
If you are using an IBM PS/2, Address and IRQ
line settings might be:
Standard Port Standard Address Standard IRQ
============= ================ ============
COM1 $03F8 4
COM2 $02F8 3
COM3 $3220 3
COM4 $3228 3
COM5 $4220 3
COM6 $4228 3
COM7 $5220 3
COM8 $5228 3
IRQ Number: This setting can be changed when the ASYNC
ENGINE is selected as the communications
driver. Valid selections are 1 through 7.
Locked Baud Rate: This setting can be changed when the ASYNC
ENGINE is selected as the communications
driver. If this is set to any value other than
0, the baud rate used to communicate with your
modem will be equal to the value specified
here. Valid entries are 0 (no lock), 9600,
19200, 38400 and 57600.
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
BUILD A BATCH FILE
If you will be running TNT on a multi-line system, there are several
ways you could go about creating a batch file. It won't take a large
amount of work to create a batch file system for loading TNT. One
example might look like this:
TNT.BAT :
- 10 -
CD \GAMES\TNT
TNT %1
CD \BBS\LINE1\
In this example, it is assumed that the line or 'node' number in use
is being passed to the batch file as a command line parameter. In the
batch file it is referred to as %1. It is beyond the scope of this
document to get into the technical aspects of batch file programming.
This is just a basic no-nonsense example scenario. Please consult
your DOS manual for more information on batch file programming.
This example shows that the current directory is changed to
\GAMES\TNT. Next, TNT is called and instructed to retrieve the line
settings for line "%1". For example, if the line number passed to
TNT.BAT is "1" then TNT would retrieve the communications settings for
line 1.
For single line systems, the batch file needed is a simple set of
instructions. For example:
TNT.BAT :
CD \GAMES\TNT
TNT 1
CD \BBS
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
GENERATE A GAME
The only thing left to do at this point is to generate an initial game
and maze. During maintenance MAPGEN would normally take care of this
task but since you're just starting out, this needs to be done
manually. This procedure may also be used to restart a game in
progress, generating a new one.
Execute the following command from the TNT subdirectory. This example
assumes that TNT is in the directory \GAMES\TNT.
CD \GAMES\TNT
MAPGEN /R
The /R parameter instructs MAPGEN to restart all program files
regardless of the current state of the game. Whenever the /R
parameter is used, any game currently in progress is terminated and a
new game/maze is generated.
The /Q parameter is optional and, when specified, instructs MAPGEN to
operate without displaying map information to the screen. This is
referred to as "quiet mode".
- 11 -
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
LET YOUR USERS PLAY!
Tunnels-N-Tombs is now ready for action!
NOTE: Some BBS software and drop file conversion utilities do not
write a proper drop file when logged in local mode, in that the
COM Port is not specified as COM0 and the Baud Rate is not
specified as 0,N,8,1. If this is the case, TNT may still be
run properly in local mode operation if the /L command line
parameter is used.
For example: TNT.EXE /L
WARNING: Even when operating in local mode, TNT expects to
find a communications chip (UART) in order to operate. For
example, you cannot run TNT even in local mode if the node
you're executing it on does not have a communications port
installed. It doesn't matter if the port is in use already or
not, it just has to exist.
PROGRAM MAINTENANCE
TNT is maintained by the MAPGEN.EXE program. MAPGEN should be run
daily from within your BBS batch file in order to determine if the
current game has been won so that a new game can be generated. If
MAPGEN determines that the current game has been won, it restarts all
program files and generates the maze for the next game. It also
creates a top three scores file that is displayed for the duration of
the next game.
You will need to run MAPGEN.EXE once per day during regularly
scheduled BBS system maintenance. This is done by calling MAPGEN with
a valid configuration profile as the command line parameter.
For example, to execute MAPGEN during BBS maintenance routines, you
might use the command:
MAPGEN.EXE
For a list of MAPGEN parameters, type:
MAPGEN.EXE ?
- 12 -
THE MAPVIEW PROGRAM
The MAPVIEW.EXE program has been included to allow you to view the
current maze one level at a time. When levels are displayed, each is
lit and even hidden items such as traps are displayed so you get an
accurate look at each generated level. Pressing "<ENTER>" after each
level is displayed moves to the next level while pressing "<Q>uit"
exits the program.
WARNING: MAPVIEW does not utilize file locking and should only be run
when TNT is not in use.
THE PLAYERS PROGRAM
The PLAYERS.EXE program is a utility that I used during program
development. I've included it for grins so you can use it or lose it.
PLAYERS generates a list of all players in the game, giving their BBS
logon name, player alias and current score. This information is
echoed both to the screen and to the file PLAYERS.LST.
PROGRAM NOTES, HINTS AND ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
TNT takes a patient and persistent player sometimes, in order to win.
These two qualities, along with some tricks, can yield a winner in just
a few days to a week. I found that throughout the testing process,
impatient players or players who don't seem to catch on, don't make a
lot of progress in the game. So I thought it would be fair to at least
document some of the items here in the Sysop document so that questions
put to you by your users can be answered.
The file TNTHINTS.DOC has been included in the distribution archive.
This file contains a list of player hints for the game.
Three DOS environment variables may be used to alter program operations.
These variables are generally used at the advice of the author if
problems arise. The environment variables supported are:
JP_DEBUG=ON When this environment variable is set, debug logging
from within the communications library is activated.
Log entries are written to the file JP_DEBUG. This is
useful for detecting problems which might prevent TNT
from loading properly (drop file not located, etc.).
JPFOSSIL=HOT When set to HOT, this variable causes the
communications library to leave the FOSSIL driver hot
when TNT is exited. You should only set this variable
if your BBS front end software cannot initialize the
- 13 -
FOSSIL driver after TNT has been played.
JPMODEM=OLD When this variable is set to OLD, TNT utilizes an older
communications initialization routine. This setting is
only recommended if, for some reason, TNT locks up when
a player enters the game.
The following list explains each item that a player can use along with
some notes that may be helpful.
RINGS
Up to 2 rings can be worn by a player at a time. Rings can be cursed.
A cursed ring cannot be removed until the curse has been removed or
until the player reads a scroll of lose item and the cursed ring is the
item that is lost.
Ring Name Description
------------------ ---------------------------------------------------
Regeneration Adds 1 hitpoint per turn up to player's maximum,
while worn.
Protection Adds +1 to the armor class of the armor being worn.
When cursed, subtracts one.
Gain Strength Adds +1 to +3 to player's strength while worn. If
cursed, subtracts +1 to +3.
Invisibility While this ring is worn, the player's piece is not
displayed. When the current level is not lit,
nothing is revealed as the player moves. If
cursed, it cannot be removed which puts the player
in a position where he might consider starving
himself to death if no scroll of remove curse is
available.
Levitation Causes the player to levitate while worn. When a
player is levitating, can attack and be attacked
but cannot pick up items. Player is immune to
traps (levitates over them).
Fire Resistance Protects the player against fire attacks by dragons
while worn. Dragons can still attack in
hand-to-hand but cannot throw fire at the player
and do any damage.
Cold Resistance Protects the player against frost attacks by
dragons and frost ghouls.
- 14 -
Teleportation When this ring is put on, the player is teleported
to a randomly selected space on the same level.
The ring then comes off automatically. This ring
cannot be cursed.
Fullness While worn, the player's vittles count remains the
same so in effect, the player doesn't get any
hungrier. If the player is wearing a cursed ring
of hunger, this ring can counter its effect and
still allow the player to move without getting
hungry.
Vampire When this ring is put on, the player's life blood
runs from his character. Specifically, hitpoints
are halved until this is taken off.
Searching While this ring is worn, the player will not be
allowed to move his piece onto a trap. Instead,
the player is warned of the trap and the trap
becomes visible.
Hunger This ring is the opposite of fullness in that while
it is worn, the player will use twice as many
vittles while moving.
POTIONS
Players drink potions which may help or cause undesirable effects.
Potions cannot be cursed.
Potion Name Description
------------------ ---------------------------------------------------
Levitation Causes the player to levitate for "x" number of
turns (selected randomly). Has the same effect as
a ring of levitation.
Healing This helps to heal a player. When a player's
hitpoints are decimated, this potion will restore
them up to the current maximum. For example, if a
player has 10 of 20 hitpoints (10(20) on the status
bar) this potion would restore it to 20(20).
Extra Healing Like the potion of healing but also increases the
player's current maximum hitpoints.
Poison This potion is one to watch out for. If a player
drinks this, he stands to lose a good deal of
strength as well as hitpoints. Once the strength
is lost, the only way to regain it is to drink a
potion of Restore Strength or eat lots of spinach.
- 15 -
Restore Strength This potion restores a user's strength back to the
player's current maximum strength. For example, if
a player has 10(18) strength, this potion will
fully restore the player's strength back to 18(18).
Gain Level When a player drinks this potion, he gains enough
experience points to move him to the next user
level.
Confusion After drinking this potion, the player becomes
confused for "x" number of turns. When in a
confused state, the player's piece doesn't move
exactly the way the player intends.
Speed This potion causes the player's attack rate to be
increased for "x" number of turns. During this
period, the player will attack twice each time an
attack is made on a monster.
Slow Player This potion causes a player to become sluggish for
"x" number of turns. During this period, the
player will move only once for every two move
commands until the potion wears off.
Invisible After drinking this potion, the player becomes
invisible for "x" number of turns. While
invisible, this potion acts as the ring of
invisible does.
Wine If a player drinks this one, he becomes drunk for
"x" number of turns. Like the potion of confusion
but doesn't last as long.
SCROLLS
Scrolls are handy items to have around but like potions, some may be
harmful. Each scroll may be read once and disappears after it has been
read. Scrolls cannot be cursed.
Scroll Name Description
------------------ ---------------------------------------------------
Identify This valuable scroll allows the player to identify
any item in his pack. Once an item has been
identified, it is displayed as if the player has
used the item before.
Teleport When this scroll is read, the player's piece is
teleported to a randomly selected space on the same
level.
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Destroy Armor As the name implies, this scroll causes the
player's armor to disintigrate. Might be good when
wearing a cursed piece of armor.
Enchant Weapon When this scroll is read, the armor being worn is
enhanced. That is, the armorclass of the worn
armor is increased by 1. If the armor worn is
cursed (eg. armorclass -5) reading several of these
scrolls could be quite useful. Maximum armorclass
is +11.
Fire When this scroll is read it bursts into flames
damage to the player in the form of lost hitpoints.
Light Reading this scroll on an unlit level causes the
level to be lit as though a wand of light were
zapped.
Blasting When this scroll is read, a number of hitpoints is
is subtracted from each monster on the current
level. Dang handy scroll but watch out... if a
scroll of blasting (or wand of blasting) is used
twice on the same level, the player is killed when
the tombs collapse on them.
Remove Curse When this scroll is read, any cursed item carried
by the player is "un-cursed". For example, a -4
weapon becomes a +4 weapon and may be unwielded or
hurled.
Lose Item When this scroll is read, a randomly selected item
is lost from the player's current pack. If the
player's pack is empty, this scroll has no effect.
Create Food When read, this scroll causes the player's vittles
count to be increased by a random number.
ARMOR
When armor is being worn, the player is harder for monsters to hit.
This is proportional to the armorclass of the armor being worn. For
example, a player wearing +5 armor is harder to hit than a player
wearing +4 armor. Armor can be cursed.
Armor Name Description
------------------ ---------------------------------------------------
Leather Found primarily on beginning levels. Offers +2
armorclass protection.
Ring Mail Offers +3 armorclass protection.
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Scale Mail Offers +4 armorclass protection.
Chain Mail Offers +6 armorclass protection.
Banded Mail Offers +8 armorclass protection.
Plate Mail The best. Offers +10 armorclass protection.
WEAPONS
Weapons are wielded by players to aid them in attacking monsters.
Weapons have an assigned armorclass for each weapon type. For example,
a +4 Battleaxe does more damage than a +3 Battleaxe. However, a Flail
is a better weapon than a Battleaxe and therefore a +3 Flail will
probably do more damage than a +4 Battleaxe.
Weapons can be cursed. When a weapon is cursed and wielded it cannot be
unwielded or hurled. All weapons may be hurled at a monster except the
Flail, Bow, or Club. When a weapon is hurled, it is removed from the
game even if it misses its intended target.
Weapons are assigned a random armorclass during map generation depending
on the weapon type. Therefore, armorclass is not listed in the table
below, which lists weapons from least to most damaging.
Weapon Name Description
------------------ ---------------------------------------------------
Arrow Most effective if hurled while a bow is wielded.
Otherwise, does minimum damage.
Rock Imagine getting clubbed with one of these. It's a
good sized rock too. Can be hurled nicely.
Club This isn't for locking your car. It's for wielding
and hitting. Cannot be hurled.
Battleaxe Great for wielding and hurling.
Flail Cannot be hurled but good for wielding.
Hammer Not your ordinary hammer.
Dagger Wield it to stab your victim or hurl it.
Spear Chuck this sucker at a monster to do some damage.
Bow Cannot be hurled. When wielded, makes hurling an
arrow more effective.
Short Sword Great for wielding and hurling.
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Long Sword Like the short sword but longer and heavier duty.
Claymore Sword Most damaging weapon. The Claymore isn't a mine
either. It's a heavy duty sword that keeps its
edge even when you're losing yours!
WANDS
Wands cannot be cursed. They only zap. Most wands are used to zap
monsters in the hopes of killing them but some have other effects.
Wands have "x" number of charges (selected at random during map
generation). Once a wand's charges are used up, you might as well leave
it since it will only take up space in your pack.
Weapon Name Description
------------------ ---------------------------------------------------
Magic Missle Not very damaging but does hurt the monster it
hits.
Fire Does significant damage to the monster is hits.
Light When zapped on an unlit level, this causes the
level to be lighted. This light is only in effect
until you a) move to another level or b) leave the
current level to the main menu.
Frost Does significant damage to the monster it hits.
Striking Does minor damage to the monster it hits.
Lightning Does significant damage to the monster it hits.
Negation This wand negates a monster's special abilities.
For example, a Giant Eye has the ability to zap
you. Zapping a Giant Eye with this wand takes away
that ability. Also great for Frost Ghouls, Umber
Hulks and Dragons.
Fear Zapping a monster with this little beauty causes it
to fear you. When a monster fears you, it won't
even fight back when attacked. This makes a
monster easy prey.
Teleportation This wand can zap an item or a monster and cause it
to be teleported to another space on the same
level. Handy when you're in a jam.
Polymorph This wand can be zapped at an item or a monster
causing it to be changed. A zapped monster will
change into another monster. A zapped item will be
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changed into another item. Handy for zapping items
that are useless in an effort to transform them
into something useful.
Sleep Like the fear charge, this wand will cause a zapped
monster to fall asleep. Sleeping monsters will not
chase you. However, if attacked, they will wake up
in a rotten mood.
Blasting Like the scroll of blasting, this wand will cause
all monsters on the current level to lose a random
number of hitpoints. But beware, if a wand or
scroll of blasting is used twice on the same level,
the tombs will collapse, killing the player.
Revealing When zapped, this wand causes all items and
monsters on the current level to be illuminated
regardless of whether or not the level is currently
lit.
FOOD
Food rations are placed throughout TNT and are depicted by the %
character. Food may be tainted. When tainted food is eaten, the player
vomits it back up and gains or loses nothing. Untainted food will
replenish a player's Vittles supply by a randomly selected number.
There are 5 types of food.
Food Name Description
------------------ ---------------------------------------------------
Tomato How on earth these were preserved over centuries is
most puzzling. Good for 75-200 vittles.
Dog Food Originally intended to feed guard dogs prior to
sealing the TNT. Good for around 200-400 vittles.
Tin of Sardines Keeps very well in the cool of the tombs. Good for
200-400 vittles.
Food Ration A ration of some food that usually is good for
250-500 vittles.
Spinach Real good for you and good for 250-500 vittles.
Eating this might also increase the player's
strength by 1..3 points.
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GOLD
Gold is scattered throughout TNT and is depicted by the $ character.
When a player moves onto this character, the gold pieces are picked up
automatically. Gold is not carried in the user's pack. When a player
has 2500 or more gold pieces, he may B>uy a saved level.
OTHER NOTES
When a monster is killed, it will sometimes leave an item behind. Items
that can be left behind include food as well as any other item that can
be carried by a player.
Players may purchase a saved level for 2500 gold pieces. When a player
buys a saved level, the current level is saved and can be restored later
should the player get killed. Saved levels are not liberal and the
following characteristics should be considered:
a) When a player buys a saved level, any existing previously saved
level is forfeited and overwritten.
b) If a player dies and has a saved level, the player is given the
opportunity to restore the saved level AT THAT TIME. If the
player does not opt to restore the saved level, it will be
forfeited. Saved levels can only be restored at the time the
player dies.
c) Saved levels are NOT available once a player reaches the last
level of the maze. Additionally, any previously saved level is
forfeited when the player reaches the last level.
THAT'S A WRAP!
I sincerely hope that you and your users will enjoy this game. A great
deal of time and effort went into producing this program. I would like
to encourage you to try this software for 60 days on your BBS and if
after 60 days you feel as good as I do about this project, please
support it by registering. I will continue to add to the game as long
as support is shown.
In today's BBS community, doorware has taken a sickening turn towards
commercialism. There are a number of professional programmers out there
who saw a market and jumped on it. These programmers created their own
library or portfolio of doors in a relatively short period of time, and
some even offer "package" deals. In comparison, I tend to "sculpt" my
programs in my spare time. After all, I a hobbiest, amateur. It seems
that some programmers have commercialized doorware to the point
where it is no longer a friendly hobby matter but rather a business.
And if it puts bread on their table, then more power to them. However I
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don't do this as a business. To run a successful business, you need to
turn a profit and I don't. My expenses far exceed registrations
received, so it continues to be a hobby for me.
My software is user-supported. Toss out any commercial ideals of this
concept. User-supported software, as I use the term, is software that is
supported through registrations by loyal Sysops/Users.
Why am I telling you this? I don't want you to get the wrong impression
of what my software is. Your registration shows your interest and
support, and as long as it is there, I will keep developing the
software. There have been those who have felt that by registering they
could impose demands on me (even backed by slanderous threats), but they
found out otherwise. I respond favorably to friendly people but
unfavorably to nasty, demanding people. Enough said.
Yours Truly,
John Parlin
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